5 Love Lessons From Marilyn Monroe

In honor of the 50th anniversary of her death, we look back at what Marilyn Monroe has taught us.

I thought about writing little love-lesson anecdotes in honor of the 50th anniversary of Marilyn Monroe's death, but then it hit me: How silly. Why not let Marilyn speak for herself? She always did throughout her life, and her words still ring true today. (She was way ahead of her time.)

So, here's a recap of the five most important lessons the icon taught us about love, and really, about life too.

1. Know what you deserve in a relationship—you're worth your weight in gold. "I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best."

2. So what if you break up? Tomorrow will be a better day. "I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together." 15 Love Lessons From Marilyn Monroe

3. True love is about more than grand gestures. It's about the little things, too. "The real lover is the man who can thrill you by kissing your forehead or smiling into your eyes or just staring into space."

4. If you want something, don't wait for a man to make it happen. Go after it. "How wrong it is for a woman to expect the man to build the world she wants, rather than to create it herself?"

5. If at first you don't succeed... "As for lovers, well, they'll come and go too. And babe, I hate to say it, most of them—actually pretty much all of them are going to break your heart, but you can't give up because if you give up, you'll never find your soul mate. You'll never find that half who makes you whole, and that goes for everything. Just because you fail once, doesn't mean you're gonna fail at everything. Keep trying, hold on, and always, always, always believe in yourself, because if you don't, then who will, sweetie? So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling, because life's a beautiful thing and there's so much to smile about."